thedrifter
02-01-06, 07:40 AM
20-year-old Pendleton man succumbs to injuries from Iraq explosion
By: ERIN SCHULTZ - Staff Writer
English teacher Gayle Smith could always count on Hugo Lopez to come around to see her, first as a student at her Fullerton high school and later as a faithful volunteer who showed up every Friday morning to help drive other teens to volunteer jobs at a nearby elementary school.
So when Lopez told her he wanted to join the Marines, and when he visited again after boot camp, she tried to fight off her worries about his safety with thoughts of the strength of his spirit.
"He was a bighearted guy, always responsible, always a leader," said the teacher from her classroom at La Vista High School, a campus of about 350.
"He was everyone's big brother, everyone's best friend," she said. "Whether it was a kid with special needs or a teen trying to stay out of gangs, Hugo was always there."
On Tuesday, Smith and other people that Lopez touched during his 20-year lifetime were mourning the loss of their friend. Lopez, who was stationed at Camp Pendleton and shipped out to Iraq last year, died Monday of burns and other injuries he sustained when an improvised bomb exploded during a patrol.
Lopez, who was born in La Habra, died at a military hospital in San Antonio, where he was being treated for burns from the explosion, which happened just before Thanksgiving, according to the Pentagon.
He was burned over 90 percent of his body, Smith said, adding that his injuries were so serious that "it was probably selfish of us to want him to live."
He leaves behind his parents, several brothers and sisters, and a number of kids for whom he was a role model, Smith said.
"He was like a son to me," she said softly.
Lopez was part of Pendleton's 2nd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment. His unit fought with East-Coast based Marines last year.
His death brings the number of locally based Marines killed in the war to 272. According to the Defense Department, 2,242 American service members, including six Pentagon workers, have been killed in the Iraq war.
At La Vista, Lopez was the first ---- and teachers hope the last ---- to die as a result of the war. Six other former students of Smith are in Iraq, she said.
"It's been hard here," she said of the mood among school faculty members Tuesday.
"He saw the Marine Corps as a way of helping him secure a future when he thought he could do good," she said of Lopez, who joined the Marines in 2004 and had won a number of medals during his short career. "He was a loyal Marine. He really felt like he could make a difference."
Contact staff writer Erin Schultz at (760) 739-6644 or eschultz@nctimes.com. To comment, go to nctimes.com.
Ellie
By: ERIN SCHULTZ - Staff Writer
English teacher Gayle Smith could always count on Hugo Lopez to come around to see her, first as a student at her Fullerton high school and later as a faithful volunteer who showed up every Friday morning to help drive other teens to volunteer jobs at a nearby elementary school.
So when Lopez told her he wanted to join the Marines, and when he visited again after boot camp, she tried to fight off her worries about his safety with thoughts of the strength of his spirit.
"He was a bighearted guy, always responsible, always a leader," said the teacher from her classroom at La Vista High School, a campus of about 350.
"He was everyone's big brother, everyone's best friend," she said. "Whether it was a kid with special needs or a teen trying to stay out of gangs, Hugo was always there."
On Tuesday, Smith and other people that Lopez touched during his 20-year lifetime were mourning the loss of their friend. Lopez, who was stationed at Camp Pendleton and shipped out to Iraq last year, died Monday of burns and other injuries he sustained when an improvised bomb exploded during a patrol.
Lopez, who was born in La Habra, died at a military hospital in San Antonio, where he was being treated for burns from the explosion, which happened just before Thanksgiving, according to the Pentagon.
He was burned over 90 percent of his body, Smith said, adding that his injuries were so serious that "it was probably selfish of us to want him to live."
He leaves behind his parents, several brothers and sisters, and a number of kids for whom he was a role model, Smith said.
"He was like a son to me," she said softly.
Lopez was part of Pendleton's 2nd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment. His unit fought with East-Coast based Marines last year.
His death brings the number of locally based Marines killed in the war to 272. According to the Defense Department, 2,242 American service members, including six Pentagon workers, have been killed in the Iraq war.
At La Vista, Lopez was the first ---- and teachers hope the last ---- to die as a result of the war. Six other former students of Smith are in Iraq, she said.
"It's been hard here," she said of the mood among school faculty members Tuesday.
"He saw the Marine Corps as a way of helping him secure a future when he thought he could do good," she said of Lopez, who joined the Marines in 2004 and had won a number of medals during his short career. "He was a loyal Marine. He really felt like he could make a difference."
Contact staff writer Erin Schultz at (760) 739-6644 or eschultz@nctimes.com. To comment, go to nctimes.com.
Ellie